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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27725078">iv. straight razor (english version)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/xbeauxny/pseuds/xbeauxny'>xbeauxny</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>who killed jason todd [english version] [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Hood/Arsenal (Comics)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Jason Todd Saves the Day, Jason Todd is Red Hood, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 07:22:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,244</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27725078</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/xbeauxny/pseuds/xbeauxny</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When the compatibility result came out, the cave went into a deep silence. The only sound that could be heard was the bats around the cave and the heavy breath of each one, when Alfred came down, and saw the screen, he was unable to hold the tray with the cups, everyone was shocked to look at the photo that appeared on the screen. The huge writing over the photo, saying that the blood was equivalent to the lost family member, took some time to be digested. Jason Todd was alive, Jason Todd was the Red Hood, Jason Todd saved everyone that night.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Alfred Pennyworth &amp; Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon &amp; Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon/Dick Grayson, Cassandra Cain &amp; Jason Todd, Dick Grayson &amp; Jason Todd, Jason Todd &amp; Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd &amp; Damian Wayne, Jonathan Kent &amp; Damian Wayne &amp; Colin Wilkes, Lian Harper &amp; Roy Harper &amp; Jason Todd, Roy Harper &amp; Bruce Wayne, Roy Harper &amp; Jason Todd, Roy Harper/Jason Todd, Selina Kyle/Bruce Wayne, Stephanie Brown &amp; Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul &amp; Damian Wayne, Talia al Ghul &amp; Jason Todd, Tim Drake &amp; Jason Todd, Tim Drake/Kon-El | Conner Kent</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>who killed jason todd [english version] [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2002672</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>115</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>iv. straight razor (english version)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is the fourth part of "Who Killed Jason Todd", based on the song Straight Razor from the EP "Who Killed Matt Maeson".</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> <iframe></iframe></p><p>When Jason returned to Gotham, it felt like he had never left it. It was gray, dark and silent. He didn’t take long to find an apartment to stay in, but he wasn’t proud of the means he had to use to get it, it wasn’t like he regretted giving a credit card fraud, it was just that he preferred to pay with real cash.</p><p> </p><p>Jason wanted a lot of things from his return to Gotham. The first one he did after having his apartment, was to get a job in one of Gotham's thousands of cafeterias, it wasn't much, and he switched functions between waiter, clerk and cook — sometimes janitor too, but only because he liked it to help — this made Jason's income enough to no longer have to defraud anything.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Hey, Mr. Stargazer</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Give me a straight razor</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>The nights went by and he realized that even if he kept busy, that didn't stop the old demons from knocking on his door. At first, he tried to ignore the times he woke up sweating — crying sometimes — with shaking hands and calling out his name, he tried to ignore it, when he needed to stay up all night, and he tried to ignore when that voice came up in the middle of day while working, and made him uncomfortable for the rest of the day.</p><p> </p><p>With the time in Gotham, Jason started looking for more things to do. In the beginning, it started with something basic like looking for schools that would let him finish high school, despite having lost all that time. Amazingly, it didn't take so long for him to be able to keep up, and quickly finish the missing classes, the hardest part was having to forge documents for someone dead. This was an experience that Jason had never had in his life, and that he didn’t expect to be quick, in a few months he had already completed some subjects, and was free of an item on the to-do list.</p><p> </p><p>In one night where the nightmares kept him awake, was when he started working on that model. It was an outline, which gradually became a reality. He gathered some materials like Kevlar, and extra technologies to help him, and soon he had his own costume to return to the life of a vigilance. When he was finally ready, he looked at the outfit feeling overwhelmed, he knew it was crazy to return to the world of vigilance with that symbol, with <em>that name</em>.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Don’t let it all faze her</em>
</p><p>
  <em>When minors get so major</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>He stared at the red symbol for a while. It was a bat in a more rectangular shape, and it was what brought him closer to them, <em>to the family that was once his</em>. It would show that he was on their side, except for some parts. Jason still had that thought in his mind, where he believed that fear wasn’t enough to stop Gotham's criminals.</p><p> </p><p>That's how he got his weapons and got into yet another dilemma before returning to that world. He hated his time in the League, because he had killed to defend his brother, but now that he returned to Gotham, he was displaced of the world, because he knew that when his father found out, he would no longer be accepted at all. That night, he put on his equipment, and stared at the red helmet, in that night, he decided that he would only use real bullets in his own head, his decision had been made, he would use rubber bullets, they would be a warning to the criminals at Crime Alley, it would be a warning from a new guard, it would be a warning from the Red Hood.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>‘Cause it don’t stop</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No, it don’t end</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>The city called for him, he felt it flow through his body with every movement he made through the streets. He operated for nights without crossing the bat’s path, sent a quick message to Gotham's scum, there was a new person wanting to control the crimes at Crime Alley, the place he had grown up, the place he would keep safe, the place that bats don't pay much attention. The Black Mask might not like the idea, but his territories would be Hood’s at any cost.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Oh, when the seams will start to wearing thin</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, and we’ll see if the same thing goes for them</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jason knew it wouldn't be long before Batman noticed the conflict over territories in that region of Gotham, and he knew it wouldn't be long before Bruce was involved in this. He learned of the involvement of bats during the transport of the Amazo robot, he knew that one of the thugs he subordinated, was going to deliver the Red Hood scheme, and that’s why Jason followed this part closely.</p><p> </p><p>He stood on the other side of Gotham’s Bay, watching the three thugs drive the truck as if they didn't know the dangerous content they were carrying, he watched as Batman and his new prodigy boy landed on top of the truck. Todd watched as Batman and Robin had some difficulties with the robot mimicking the Justice League's moves, and he saw when Nightwing made his great entrance, showing that they had someone else to help.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Oh, and I tried to start caring like you and like them</em>
</p><p>
  <em>When you said that I was killing myself</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jason saw the three bats win the fight with the robot, he couldn't be happier. Of course, it wasn’t his intention the robot explode from the waist up, he just wanted the robot not to fall into the hands of the Black Mask, God knows what he would do with something so powerful.</p><p><br/>
That was when happened the thing Jason feared the most. After days of patrolling without drawing attention, days of running Gotham's underworld the way he could and thought it best, all of that, for that night, those thugs tell the bats who they worked for, that's when Jason shot the container in the middle of the three thugs, a warning shot, he had made a deal with all the henchmen who had gone to his side out of fear. <em>He would give protection against Black Mask and Batman, with two exceptions, not mentioning his name and not trafficking to children.</em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em>I’ve killed everything but my shame</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>It was then that Batman left his sidekicks behind and began an unbridled chase with the Red Hood. This ended up taking Jason to a stolen car, with the bat chasing him with his jet, Todd knew where he was going, sending another message, this time to Batman. The Red Hood wouldn't get in his way, so Batman shouldn't get in his.</p><p> </p><p>He knew that his methods were different from theirs, and that was why Bruce was after him. Jason saw Bruce's expression when they mentioned the name he adopted, and that's what Jason would use against Bruce, he knew exactly where he was going, and when his car went through the warehouse's iron gate, he quickly got out of it after crashing with the car in one of the cauldrons with flammable chemicals.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Hey, Mr. Trailblazer</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Spare you a joint paper</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Everything was fresh in Batman's mind, he knew that his enemy knew him very well, only knowing him well enough lead someone to take him to that place again. Bruce knew this was a warning, and that he couldn't face him now, he knew that the Red Hood was smart enough to bring him there. <em>Where the Joker was born</em>.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“<strong>It's hard to forget that night, huh?</strong>” Batman looked at the platform hanging above where he was standing, there was the man he was chasing in the past few minutes, a red helmet, a kevlar suit, combat boots, gloves and a brown leather jacket. The man in front of him was prepared for anything, not leaving fingerprints, or any trace of DNA, he was smart, Bruce would give him that point. “<strong>In a way, Batman...</strong>” Bruce couldn't even put his voice on any face, the helmet distorted the man's voice, for the first time, Batman had nothing. “<strong>This was the site of your first great failure</strong>”. Bruce remains attentive, the man hadn’t stopped pointing the gun in his direction, and the computer on the mask lenses, indicated that inside the gun, had rubber bullets, it wouldn't kill him, but they would hurt him, he used guns, but he hadn’t killed anyone, yet. “<strong>Maybe your greatest, but certainly not your last, right?</strong>” Batman remained quiet, just observing, the helmet was well coated, it wasn’t possible to see anything by the x-ray view, and all Bruce could say with certainty was that the helmet was well stocked with several technologies. “<strong>Ah, memories!</strong>” He accompanies the man aiming at the car, and firing, causing the spark to mix with the chemical element causing the explosion.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>It’s strange how the days layer</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And weigh on you years later</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jason didn’t stay in the warehouse for long, he walked away quickly for fear of being followed. Bruce returned to the cave later, and had some information from Dick, he found out more, he was grateful that Dick and Tim were helping him with this case, but he was afraid of what the man was capable of. Bruce was trying to decide how long he would let his boys help him.</p><p> </p><p>“This bit of intel was what brought me to town”. Dick speaks loudly, drawing Bruce's attention. “Good thing I always had perfect timing, take a look”. The footage showed the Red Hood patrolling the streets of Gotham, Bruce does not remember seeing the man around, which worried him the most. “I got this shot from a snitch, he said that this guy has been making some serious moves”.</p><p>“The Red Hood?” Tim asks looking at the two.</p><p>“Might be”. Bruce replies, staring at the screen, starting to type</p><p>“Yeah, he bears a resemble to the original”. Bruce knew it well, and as soon as the image he searched for appeared, he turns his gaze to his children.</p><p>“Several criminals have already used this identity”. Bruce speaks, seeing Alfred approaching the three.</p><p>“One criminal of particular interest though, huh?” Dick speaks, sitting in the other chair next to the computer. “But he's locked up”.</p><p>“Not his EMO, either”. Tim seemed uncomfortable with the conversation, he knew they were talking about the Joker, but he didn't want to get into it. “There’s been an up taking heavy trafficking, but crime it’s down”.</p><p>“Indeed, it is”. Alfred joins the conversation, bringing a tray with three cups of coffee. “Master Bruce got almost three hours of sleep in the last two days. True boss man’s holiday”.</p><p>“But he's locked up”. Dick says, taking one of the cups and adding sugar, he smiles at Alfred. “Like a lot locked up”. Tim laughs, watching Bruce go to the car without telling Dick. “Maybe we should go for a visit. Typical...” He smiles at Tim, shaking his head at the car, indicating where they would go next. “Could you just once say “let’s get in the car”?! Is that so hard?”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>‘Cause it don’t stop</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No, it don’t end</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>After that, Jason stayed out of sight of the bats for a while. Peace didn’t last long, he remained on patrol, but did nothing that would attract any attention. The nights became more alone, he forgot what it was like to have other person on patrol together, things changed quickly, and since he was back, Jason had to adjust to many things.</p><p> </p><p>It was strange that every day seemed the same. Jason didn't have much to do, mostly trying to stay out of the bat's radar, until one day, he failed to do that. He watched the building explode, he saw Batman, Nightwing and Robin being hit by the explosion, that's when the Red Hood couldn't stay away.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Oh, when the seams will start to wearing thin</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, and we’ll see if the same thing goes for them</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>The Red Hood ran like never before. Jason Todd ran, because he was afraid of losing what he once called family, he arrived quickly in the rubble, the building hadn't collapsed yet, but it was collapsing, and Jason had to act fast. He did not understand why bats were investigating a case in a residential building in Gotham, but he knew he had little time to take his family and others.</p><p> </p><p>He went from top to bottom, he had seen with the x-ray view of the helmet, that the bats were on the sixth floor. Jason entered the eighth, rescuing a man trapped under a rock, and ordered the man to leave by the fire escape, he watched the rest of the eighth floor, and realized that there was no one else there.</p><p> </p><p>Hopefully, most of the building would still be working, or at least coming home. Jason counted his luck, and went down to the seventh floor, looking for someone by the spreading flame path, he ran to break a door, when he heard two children scream, and quickly managed to get both of them out of the building, saving two more people. He saw by the X-ray that firefighters were already helping people from the floors below, so three people had to be removed from the building.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Oh, and I tried to start caring like you and like them</em>
</p><p>
  <em>When you said that I was killing myself</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I’ve killed everything but my shame</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Jason acted quickly, taking the youngest out first. He noticed that the other two were still unconscious, so he placed Tim's body on the roof of the building ahead, leaving him protected to the best of his ability, when he returned to the building, Nightwing had started to wake up, but he couldn’t move fast, probably had some concussions and some broken bones.</p><p> </p><p>The Red Hood tried to ignore, when Nightwing tried to pull away from his touch. He quickly told Dick that he didn't want to hurt anyone and that he was trying to help, after a while, Dick let him help, and when he least expected it, he was on Tim's side, who was already awake calling for help, probably Alfred, Jason didn't. He blinked when he returned to pick up his father.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Oh, and I’ll try to convince myself I’m worth it</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, and you’ll lie with your strange and fitting purpose</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Saving Batman from the building was a challenge, practically all of the entrances and exits Jason had previously used were covered in flame. He moved quickly, and reached the fallen man, Jason did not count on the stone falling near the man, but even so he managed to protect the unconscious man, Jason did not notice at the time, but he had been hit in a way that compromised his suit, the bleeding on the man.</p><p> </p><p>It didn't take long after that for Jason to protect Bruce from the flames, and move the man out of the building, hooking up to the front. Dick checked Tim's injuries, and Bruce most certainly needed more medical attention. Jason placed the man on the roof floor, earning alarmed looks from the two partners.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Oh, and I’ll try to convince myself I’m worth it</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, and you’ll lie with your strange and fitting purpose</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Why are you helping?” He heard Nightwing's weak voice, and ignored it to continue checking the state that Bruce was in.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Well, I swore I would never go there</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, I’ve killed everything but my shame, shame, shame, shame</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Agent A already sent the jet, let's get home fast”. Jason hears his replacement speak; he hated that one day he thought the boy was a threat to him.</p><p>“Thanks, Robin”. He sees Nightwing approaching, Jason had noticed at least one concussion and some broken bones, but it was better to examine better. “And thank you...”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Well, I swore I would never go there</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, I’ve killed everything but my shame, shame, shame, shame</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“<strong>No...</strong>” Dick extends his hand, indicating that he should stop.</p><p>“Seriously, you could have left us there”. Jason remains silent, rising. “Thanks”.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Hey, Mr. Stargazer</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Give me a straight razor</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>The Red Hood disappeared after that, it wasn't about winning or losing in Gotham, but that night, Jason had definitely won. The bats were taken home, where they let Alfred examine Bruce right, in the meantime, Tim was looking for news about the state of the people in the building, he couldn't believe they had been ambushed by the Black Mask, much less that he activated a bomb in a residential building.</p><p> </p><p>The news spread like water. <em>“Red Hood saves bats”, “Red Hood saves Crime Becoming”, “Red Hood saves many people from collapsing building”,</em> Tim was in this life long enough to know that where he had good news, Vicki Vale would go after , no matter who it was, Tim felt his heart lighter, knowing that the Red Hood had helped, not only them, but many people in that building.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Hey, Mr. Trailblazer</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Spare you a joint paper</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Is everyone all right, Tim?” He hears Dick's voice from the medical wing of the cave, Tim gets up from his computer chair, approaching there, seeing Dick sitting in a chair next to Bruce's stretcher, while Alfred finished packing things.</p><p>“Yes, one of the firefighters at the scene said that if the Red Hood hadn’t appeared, many people would have died”. Dick nods, looking at Bruce's chest. “Did he cut himself somewhere?”</p><p>“The blood is not his”. Dick speaks, showing a small pot of blood, so it could only be... “I think the Hood got hurt trying to save Bruce, and well, it ended up bleeding on him”.</p><p>“So we can know who he is”. Dick nods, getting up, letting Alfred finish cleaning Bruce, to finally rest. “This is good, isn't it?”</p><p>“Yes…” Tim had noticed that he looked hesitant.</p><p>“What’s going on?”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Hey, Mr. Stargazer</em>
</p><p>Give me a straight razor</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Doesn't it look strange?” Tim looks at his brother, not understanding where he was going. “A few days ago, he took Bruce in one of the worst places, as a warning”.</p><p>“To stay away”. Dick agrees.</p><p>“And today he saves us all?” Tim had thought about it, but wasn't it nice to know that someone else was trying to help? “Well, let's get this question out of our head”. He approaches the computer, placing the blood sample.</p><p> </p><p>It took some time to analyze and find a compatibility in the database. The boys had changed clothes, and Alfred had gone upstairs to do something to drink and eat, the two brothers were talking, and just before reaching 90%, Bruce had woken up, and nothing and no one would keep him in bed, so the boys just let him join.</p><p> </p><p>When the compatibility result came out, the cave went into a deep silence. The only sound that could be heard was the bats around the cave and the heavy breath of each one, when Alfred came down, and saw the screen, he was unable to hold the tray with the cups, everyone was shocked to look at the photo that appeared on the screen. The huge writing over the photo, saying that the blood was equivalent to the lost family member, took some time to be digested. Jason Todd was alive, Jason Todd was the Red Hood, Jason Todd saved everyone that night.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>That was probably the part that took me the longest to decide what to put on, and I'm sorry for that, and that was the reason for my delay.<br/>I was wondering if anyone can inform me if it have a list of prompts for the December, I wanted to do a project with 31 days of December, I think I can do it, because I already separated some prompts, but I wanted to see if someone else was going to do it, because with that, I could follow the same list as everyone else, because it would be interesting to see my writing and other people's writing on the same idea, I'll post on tumblr later, about the list that I plan to make, based on other lists, but I don't know if I'm going to do it, would you guys like to read that?</p><p>Well, that's it for today, thanks for reading, kudos and opinions are always welcome, see you at part five :)</p><p>Where to find me on neighboring social media:<br/><a href="https://twitter.com/xbeauxxny">my twitter</a><br/><a href="https://xbeauxny.tumblr.com/">my tumblr</a> <br/><a href="https://www.wattpad.com/user/xbeauxny">my wattpad</a></p></blockquote></div></div>
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